


Bemuse My Life

by MissWonnykins



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Domestic Fluff, Future Fic, M/M, Mild Language, Mpreg, Palletshipping Secret Santa 2016
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-10 23:54:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8944438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissWonnykins/pseuds/MissWonnykins
Summary: It's funny how expecting kids can make you slow down at first and really think about all the little details. --A gift-fic for user randomawesomeinterests on tumblr; part of the Palletshipping Secret Santa gift exchange. Happy Holidays~





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [randomawesomeinterests](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=randomawesomeinterests).



> My giftee this year for the Palletshipping Secret Santa was a user I actually talk to frequently, named randomawesomeinterests, so I was thrilled to bits. She asked for "An Mpreg fanfic where Gary is pregnant with his and Ash's baby - Or a fanfic where Gary is in some mortal danger and Ash bravely saves him." I chose the Mpreg option, and I hope it's well received. Happy Holidays!

“Soooo…”

Gary Oak nearly choked on his mouthful of juice. “Would you _stop_ sneaking up on me?!” He managed to cough out, whipping around to leer at the offending speaker.

He wasn’t surprised to see who it was - Ash Ketchum had long since moved himself into the auburn-haired man’s home and lab. The pair had dropped the rest of their defenses and had shacked up together just before they’d hit their twenties...far too long of a wait, according to some of their peers. Ash moved in after a year, making that his home to return to after his long journeys, and Gary...tolerated it, for the most part. It had been difficult to become used to, at first: Ash wasn’t a slob, per say, but he clearly hadn’t had much practice in housekeeping. His cooking was still atrocious. Gary had begged Delia to sit down with his partner and make him see the error of his ways, but Delia seemed even less eager to teach Ash than Gary was. The pair did bicker quite a bit, as well as nitpick and tease, but that was to be expected and - if you asked them - they were quite content with that.

With a frown, Ash finally took his weight off of the doorframe leading into Gary’s laboratory and wandered across the tile. “I didn’t sneak up on you.” He insisted, and Gary scoffed. “I didn’t! Quit being dramatic.”

The man - now a full fledged Professor - rolled his eyes. “You’re not as heavy-footed as you think you are.” Gary grumbled, sipping from his glass again. His eyes finally took in what Ash was holding, narrowing immediately after. “Is that a **real** Stufful or a stuffed one…?”

Ash only laughed at Gary’s wary tone. “Stuffed, thankfully.”

“Why in Arceus’s name did you bring that creepy thing into the house…?”

In response, the trainer shrugged and indicated a bow tied around the plush toy’s neck. Gary reached out with nimble fingers and plucked the tag from the coils of ribbon, unfolding it. He made a disgusted noise, wrinkling his nose. “Oh, _of course_.”

“I’m sure Tracey meant well.”

“And I’m sure he’s getting us back for sending him coloring books for Christmas last year.” Gary snapped, dropping the tag as if it were coated in slime. “Look it in the eyes and tell me he didn’t get it just to bother us.”

Ash held it up to face level, staring the doll in the soulless, black eyes for a good moment or two before lowering it with a shudder. “Yeah, all right. He’s a jerk.” He admitted.

“You’re damn right.” Gary sat back in his chair, satisfied with the reply. “Now take it out to the grill and light it up. Release whatever demon that’s possessed it. At the very least, don’t put anywhere near the nursery.”

“Awwww, but _Gary_!” Ash simpered, pressing the doll against the other man’s face. Gary held up a hand to push it away with a growl. “Imagine if they became best friends. And he’ll wanna start with a Stufful when he’s ten, and then we can watch him train it and evolve it--”

“Oh, yes, because YOU of all people want a Bewear running around here, right?” The professor snarled, leaning over the opposite arm of his chair to stay away from the Stufful doll.

Pouting, Ash pulled back. He hadn’t had very good experiences with Bewear; one particular incident was enough to give other trainers nightmares, as he and Pikachu had been chased by a rather large one while it cut down trees in its wake. Stufful themselves were deceitful in nature - they looked rather adorable, but were typically quite nasty and mean. Neither Ash nor Gary had any fond feelings for the Pokemon. The trainer finally tucked the doll under his arm, shrugging. “Better than Muk.”

With a snort, Gary smirked up at his former rival. “You say that, but I’m pretty sure you’re all a tither when yours gives you a hug. I’d take that slimy guy any day over one of those pink demons.”

“Mm.” To Gary’s annoyance, Ash sat himself on the professor’s desk, dangerously close to his juice cup. He generally kept his work space organized, so the other man wasn’t actually hurting anything, but Gary was rather peculiar about his lab. Much like his grandfather before him, the younger Oak had built his home and his workplace side by side, and he was careful not to allow either portion to spill into the other too often. It was becoming increasingly difficult, as of late, and when the pair would discuss their future it was becoming all too clear that it would be impossible. “What if it’s a girl?”

The sudden question caught Gary off guard. He arched a forked brow. “Female Stufful and Bewear are even more territorial, Ash, you know that.”

But Ash shook his head. “I mean the kid.”

Ah. That. Gary folded his arms over his chest loosely, resting them on the top of his rounded belly. To say that it had come as a surprise was perhaps the understatement of the millennium. Absolutely no one - most importantly, Ash and Gary themselves - had been sure how to take the news that the Pokemon researcher was pregnant. It had come about in the most fantastical, absolutely unbelievable way that Gary was tempted to simply tell people he was actually female to avoid being treated like even more of an oddity. Ash, it seemed, had rather interesting connections with what were essentially gods and that was all that he felt he could safely say regarding it. To his credit, Ash came clean about having asked his Legendary friends about the possibility and had apologized for how abruptly it had come about. It was still ridiculously difficult to explain to others and even harder to get them to actually _believe_ their story. At the very least, Gary’s doctors had been able to see the proof for themselves.

“It’s male, Ash.” Gary said, carefully. It was hard for Ash to tell at points when Gary wasn’t annoyed with him and when he was, especially when he swung between moods at the drop of a hat. He didn’t want to argue at the moment. “That wasn’t exactly a finger.”

“But if it was, d’you think she’d want a Stufful?”

He had to laugh at that. “ _Hell_ no, because we’d teach her at a young age that they’re basically Satan’s children. What kind of a neglectful parent do you take me for, huh?” The professor joked. He succeeded in getting his partner to chuckle with him. “Same with a boy...which this is. It’s 100% guaranteed or your money back.”

“Smartass.” Ash accused, but there was no bite to the word. One of his weathered, scarred hands reached up and settled in Gary’s hair, fingertips rubbing small circles into his scalp. For a moment, they were content to sit like that in silence. Not every waking minute of their lives was spent egging each other on, of course. Times like these - quiet, with soft and sweet touches - came more frequently than others believed. Eventually, Ash spoke up again. “What Pokemon d’you think it--”

“He.” Gary cut in.

“ _He_.” Ash corrected himself, struggling to look irritated and failing, “Will get? I mean, there’s Eevee.”

The auburn-haired man rolled his shoulders again, closing his eyes. “No Eevee.” He murmured, tilting his head slightly to one side. Ash took the hint and adjusted his hand’s position on the other’s head. “He’ll do it the proper way and get his starter from a regional professor.”

“You’re a professor.”

“I don’t hand out starter Pokemon, Ash, I’m not certified.” One green eye opened lazily. “We’ve been over this.”

“You could get yourself certified in ten years.” The trainer pressed.

Gary shook his head lightly. “There’s already a regional professor certified to give out both starter Pokemon and a Pokedex to new trainers, and you know damn well who it is. Not that I think Gramps would care if we moved in on his territory, but the League would be pretty miffed. We’d essentially be handing out the same Pokemon here, anyway: Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander.”

Knowing that he’d been defeated, Ash took it gracefully. “So...which of those three would he pick?”

Quiet gently fell over them again as they idly wondered. The pair had found themselves doing a lot of thinking about little things that really had no bearing on their lives. It really wouldn’t matter which starter Pokemon their child would pick, ten years down the road, but it was nice to think about. It wouldn’t have any effect on their lives where they would take their future son for holidays, ultimately, but picturing each place and the memories they could possibly make was heart warming. Lots of little things...Gary found himself getting sentimental just over what toys to put in the crib upstairs, nowadays. Ash was a sap in general, so those sorts of things from him were normal; Gary wasn’t sure where this maternal sort of feeling came from for himself and had to chalk it up to what was happening to his body over time. Perhaps a bit of it was bitterness left over from his own childhood and the hope that stemmed from it, that he could possibly make this kid feel a bit more loved than he felt growing up.

“It doesn’t really matter.” He finally drawled. “They’re all equally good Pokemon to start with, with their own strengths and weaknesses. That’s the point of having a Grass, Water, and Fire starter in each region.”

Ash groaned - if he were younger, it’d be a whine for sure. “Bor-ing.”

“Alright, asshole, so which one are you picturing?”

“Charizard.” Ash blurted immediately, before blushing just a little. “Err. I mean...Charmander.”

“Oh. Yeah. Wonder why that is.” The professor replied in a deadpan fashion.

“Come on, Gary. Pick one.”

He had to think about it a moment longer before finally giving in. “Bulbasaur. Neither of us have a Venusaur; it’s the only full evolution of a Kanto starter that we don’t have. I’m sure he’d be curious, growing up with examples of what Charmander and Squirtle become but not Bulbasaur. So he’ll take the plunge, maybe just to try to do things differently than we did.”

When he looked up at Ash, the man was staring at him with his eyebrows raised. Ash finally shook himself. “You took that wayyyyy too seriously for you to just say it ‘doesn’t matter’.” He pointed out.

“I could do the same thing for Squirtle or Charmander, too, Ash. It’s what I do.” Gary replied with a small smile. “But yeah...I’d be okay with putting my money on Bulbasaur. And...I guess we could always give him an Eevee.”

“You’re such a jackass…!” Ash lightly pushed at the other man’s head as Gary snickered. “You just said he’d have to do things normally!”

“He will! He’ll get a normal starter, and we’ll just give him an Eevee for...I dunno, how about his first gym badge? That’s a fair gift, right?”

“Is that what the professor did for you?” At Gary’s questioning look, Ash gave him a sheepish smile. “Sorry...I meant your grandpa. Is that how you got your Eevee?”

“No. That kook Bill gave me Eevee.”

“He’s not a kook, Gary, he’s a nice guy!”

“He’s _weird_.”

“You’re weird.”

Gary shoved hard at Ash’s side, then. “Fuck off, that’s a lot coming from you.” Ash merely laughed again, catching Gary’s hands and tugging him. “Easy…! Don’t make me bump my desk with the kid, c’mon.”

“Whoops. Sorry.” And Ash genuinely seemed to be, even worried. “You good?”

“Pecha*.” Gary promised. He gently took his hands back, finally scooting out his chair and getting to his feet. “If you wanted a hug, you could’ve just asked.”

The trainer beamed at him, hopping off of Gary’s work station to wrap the shorter man in a hug. A lot had changed with them over time. Gary was no longer the taller of the pair of them, and stood perhaps a head shorter than Ash. He was also nowhere near as muscular as the man who still traveled the world by foot, battling Pokemon far and wide. The younger Oak was a researcher who studied and worked primarily in his lab, and though he hadn’t gone completely soft there was no denying that he was no Adonis. Ash’s scruffy chin settled neatly over the top of his head, right where Gary liked it, and the professor would be hard pressed to tell anyone aloud that the arrangement didn’t suit him. On the contrary, it suited him very well.

“Y’know,” Ash murmured, his voice rumbling in his throat, “mom’s been asking me when we’re going to get married.”

“Is she? What’d you tell her?”

“I told her I’d ask you what you thought.” Was the honest answer.

It was that sort of honesty that Gary loved. To have someone just tell you - no bullshit - what they truly thought was a good trait to have. It was one of many that he loved about Ash. “I’m not walking down the aisle like this. I’ll waddle.” He whined.

Once again, Ash barked out a laugh. “But I like it when you waddle! It’s cute!”

“Say that again, and you can kiss your balls goodbye.” Gary hissed, glaring up at the taller man.

“Okay, okay. So after the baby gets here?”

“...You’re serious about this?” Gary asked, sounding skeptical. When Ash nodded, Gary could only shrug his shoulders. “Yeah, all right. We might as well be chained up together.”

“Don’t say it like that. We’ve been living together how long, now?”

He couldn’t argue with that. If they hadn’t murdered each other by now, then he supposed signing a piece of paper and having a little party about it wouldn’t change much. “Point taken.” He mumbled into Ash’s shirt. Then he began to giggle. “Hey...we can decide to get married in five seconds, but we can’t pick out a name for this kid in nine months. We’re a bit backwards.”

“Wull, names’re kind of a big deal.” His partner - fiance? That was going to take a bit of time to get used to - joked.

Gary grunted in agreement. “Still against Gary Jr.?”

“I will _always_ be against anything with ‘Jr.’ attached. He should be his own person, not just a smaller version of someone else.”

That took Gary by surprise. Once in awhile, despite his simple nature, Ash did say things that had a profound amount of intelligence to them and Gary was never prepared for when that would happen. “Fair point.” He weakly replied, before clearing his throat. “So we’re back at Isaac and Aiden.”

“This’d be so much easier if you were having twins.”

“In what other way?” The professor asked, sounding downright poisonous. Ash gave a nervous and weak laugh in response. “Exactly. Don’t you dare suggest that idea to your little pals, either. If I wake up twice as huge, I know where to find you and how to hide your body.”

Ash pressed his lips to Gary’s forehead. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“Twice, you mean.”

“Gary…”

“No, I’m not going to let you live it down. Don’t ask me to. It was the biggest, most colossal screw up you’ve ever set into motion…” He suddenly pecked the other man on the mouth. “...and I’m grateful for it. But don’t push it. We’re adopting like a normal gay couple next time, you understand me, Ketchum?”

Instead of being threatened, Ash seemed to be off on another train of thought: “So...does this make you Gary Ketchum?”

“ **FUCK** no. You’re Ash Oak. That makes more sense.”

“But you’re the mom, Gary.”

“I’m one of two fathers, you idiot.”

“You’re the one who’s at home all the time.”

“I work here at my home.”

“OUR home. Plus, you’re the one on the bottom.”

“Go fuck yourself from now on, then, and then there’s no top OR bottom. How about that, Ashy-Boy?”

“You’re such a little jerk.” Ash mumbled, frowning sourly at the suggestion while Gary smirked deviously at him. He must’ve been determined to wipe that look from Gary’s face, because he quickly scooped up the shorter man into his arms like the Oak was a blushing bride...and, of course, he might as well be soon. Now it was Ash’s turn to smirk in triumph, his prize looking quite flustered and annoyed in his arms. “But that makes you easier to hold.”

“Ugh, no, don’t you ever use another cheesy line like that on me ever again. I want a divorce.” Gary groaned dramatically, mock-gagging.

“Gonna have to marry me, first, Gary.” Ash crowed, turning away from the man’s desk and heading to the door. “So that means I’ve got at least a couple months for you to change your mind.”

“About your awful pickup lines or divorce? They make me feel like I’m going through morning sickness again, they’re so bad.”

The trainer pretended to act wounded, carefully moving through the doorway so that he wouldn’t knock Gary against it. “These are prime lines from Brock himself! He’ll be so heartbroken that you don’t like them.”

“That explains why they’re so Arceus-awful. Aht--! Slow down, you’re making him move.”

Ash stopped immediately, looking enthralled. “I thought you said he didn’t do that much anymore.”

The researcher clearly looked uncomfortable, one hand absently rubbing over his abdomen. “He doesn’t.” He admitted, “but when he does, that’s a whole lot of baby acting up in there. There’s not much room anymore.”

“Think he’s impatient?”

“I _know_ he’s impatient: he’s got you for a father.” Gary immediately shot back, but there was a lack of venom to it - just fatigue. Ash held him a little tighter. The pregnancy had been taxing thus far, and though it was nearly at an end it brought no relief and no break in his exhaustion. Perhaps he didn’t live the life of action and adventure that Ash did, but that didn’t make Gary’s line of work any less draining. He’d had to cut back on his late nights in the lab when it had begun to severely affect his body, and it still wasn’t quite enough to balance out how much energy he was using up on a daily basis. Things would likely not get much easier once the baby finally arrived, and neither of them was stupid enough to think it would. Ash was taking off at least three years from his travels to help out and generally just be a parent like his own father _wasn’t_ , after which they agreed it would be fine for him to set off again. Still, Gary would ask him quite often - like now: “Are you sure you’re okay with staying so long?”

“Yes.” There was no question. Ash didn’t doubt the choice at all, even if Gary did. Gary had even fought with him a little, admitting that he felt guilty for Ash taking such a long time away from his passion, but Ash stood firm. He had grown up without a proper father figure from a young age, having lost the man to his training lifestyle. He didn’t know where the man was, now, hadn’t heard from him since he was a small boy. He wouldn’t do that to his own kids, and he’d decided that long ago. Likewise, he’d expressed that Gary hadn’t had his own parents in his life, either, and that was usually enough to keep Gary quiet for a short time. “Sorry. You’re just gonna have to put up with me.” Ash gruffly added.

“You say it like that’s a hard thing to do.” Confessed Gary.

“Are you actually admitting that I’m-” Ash gasped, “- _not_ a giant burden on you? Lemme call up the newspaper.”

The auburn-haired man laughed, wrapping his arms loosely around Ash’s shoulders. “Yeah yeah yeah...don’t get a swelled head.”

“That’s your job, isn’t it?”

“Buddy, I’m real close to your neck right now, do you _want_ me to strangle you?” Gary said in a tone that was sickeningly sweet and obviously deadly.

Ash simply kissed him on the mouth, long and sweet, and continued carrying him off into the house portion of the building. Behind them, the Stufful doll lay on its side on the floor. Its black-hole eyes stared at the wall before a brown blur tackled it and flipped over on the tile. The Eevee bit at its face, using its back feet to kick mercilessly at the stuffed Pokemon’s underbelly. A sharp bark made it pause, fluffy tail thumping softly against the floor; Gary’s Umbreon appeared, slinking out from her place under Gary’s desk. She sniffed the doll before snorting and sneezing. Her grumbles told the Eevee to follow her as she walked through the lab door, but Eevee waited until Ash’s Pikachu scampered out from under the desk to go with them. If Umbreon disapproved of Pikachu shocking the creepy doll on his way by, she didn’t show it, perhaps even grinned a little at Eevee’s amused squeal. The tiny Poke-family followed their masters, mirroring what was to come for the humans soon enough.

 

-End-

**Author's Note:**

> *Pecha - The equivalent of saying ‘Peachy’. Pecha Berries just remind me of peaches in their shape and color.
> 
> Edit: randomawesomeinterests has chosen 'Aiden' for the baby's name. <3
> 
> Merry Christmas to my Palletshipping Secret Santa child, randomawesomeinterests. I was really surprised and thrilled to get you as my child this year, especially given what you wanted. I hope this is just what you asked for!


End file.
